“We were fortunate to have met John Mesadieu six years ago when he became our son Justin’s basketball coach for a local recreational league. This was the beginning of a cherished relationship. Throughout these years John has not only been a coach but has also been a mentor to Justin and several others in the community. John has spent countless hours of not only teaching basketball but has also been there to support kids in the game of life. Several grade students experience ups and downs and he's been there to keep them focused and motivated. Speaking from firsthand knowledge, John has been there for our son, on a number of occasions. We're grateful that John became a part of our lives years ago. I'm confident that others will share similar experiences as us.”
-Brett and Sheryl
“Coach John has helped me grow in so many ways as a person. i Don't believe I would be as hard of a worker and as hard on myself if wasn't for him. he helped me and all other kids tremendously in not just basketball but the lessons it teaches beyond. I know I’m still young, but I appreciate everything he has done for my wellbeing. Also, he has made me a 100x better basketball player than I could imagine.”
-Justin
“John is the kind of man who everyone can learn from and should look up to. My relationship with John started through him being my basketball coach, but it quickly grew to something much greater than just that. Basketball was just his platform to accomplish what he truly wants to do, create leaders within the community and beyond. I would not be the same person that I am today if it were not for the countless hours, I spent listening to him. I hope that one day I will be able to impact people in the same way that he has for me and many other people in this community.”
-Grayson
“As a young kid in my early middle school years, John has helped me become not only a better athlete, but a better man. John would take me and a few other players to the local Y early morning training and pouring wisdom into us. He never asked for money or anything in return. He truly wanted to see the young generation reach their callings and highest potential. I'm forever grateful to have learned all the valuable lessons I did from John and will continue to apply those values into my life.”
-Joshua
“I have known John Mesadieu for almost 10 years now. I have interacted with John in many different settings and capacities. I have always found John to be a principled, disciplined and committed individual.
I have known him to be a positive influence on our community and the kids growing up in it. John has been active in the Naples community to support the development of our youth. He has freely given of his time, expecting nothing in return, to develop kids both physically and mentally.
John is a strong proponent of preparing kids to deal with the challenges that life brings, so that they can be mentally prepared to overcome struggles and suffering that life sometimes brings. I can honestly say that all of the kids I know that he has worked with have been positively impacted by his involvement in their lives.
John teaches those that he comes in contact with about the importance of confidence, positivity and mental toughness.”
-Derrick
“I have known john mesadieu for approximately 10years. during that time period, he has worked with dozens of teenage youths on their basketball skills and more importantly on how to be an upstanding citizen and man in today’s society. he has spent countless hours, most without being compensated, helping young men turn the corner on both their basketball game and on how to handle life.”
-Greg
“Our family has known John Mesadieu since our son was assigned to him as a coach in a local travel basketball organization around six years ago. John was the best coach our son has ever had. He had a gift for motivating the kids and giving them the confidence to be their best in a way I have not seen duplicated.
When the season ended, John formed a small group of boys he continued to coach and mentor, meeting them several days a week in the early morning hours at the YMCA before school began. He gave his time freely without ever asking for or expecting compensation; rather, he did it out of his love for the basketball game and the selfless desire to see these kids succeed. John’s coaching in those early hours proved to be invaluable, as I watched our son and the other kids he coached excel beyond their peers as a result.
John took some time off from coaching when his kids were very young so that he could devote his time to them fully. We were so sad to not have him continue his work with our son, but we understood his dedication to his family.
Just this past year, John re-engaged with the Southwest Florida basketball community and has been spending his spare time mentoring promising basketball players and helping them to get the exposure that the local basketball community often hasn’t received. He simply has a selfless desire to do whatever he can to help the kids be in the best position to achieve their dreams of playing basketball at the next level in college.
I have the utmost respect for John, not only for what he has done as a coach and mentor to our son in helping him to be not only the best athlete he can be, but also the best person he can be, but also for his commitment to giving back to the community by helping local basketball talent to reach their highest potential.”
-Karen
“I have known John through helping the youth within Lee and Collier County since I fully moved here in 2000. He has been a role model to many of the youth and has had connection and ability to transfer over hard work and great values to many of these kids from across SWFL. He knows has a social media platform where he helps kids in SWFL gain more exposure across the country in helps to make them more marketable for future opportunities with the game of basketball and further (College). I have known John to be a very hardworking and caring Coach with this matter which has gain him the trust with many of today’s kids and parents in reaching out to John in helping them further their basketball skills and opportunities. John has a positive impact on our youth.”
-David
“I have known John Mesadieu through playing basketball for over 7 years. I have always seen John as a man of integrity, love and community oriented. John is active in the community working with the youth. As a part of the basketball community, throughout collier county he can be found using basketball as a tool to mentor and work with the youth. Through multiple conversations with John, we have discussed what we both do and can do moving forward to help the youth in the community.”
-Nikita
“I have known John Mesadieu for over 10 years now. I had the pleasure of playing high school basketball with him and now coaching alongside him helping our community by giving back through the game of basketball. There is no profession more noble and important than that of a coach and mentor to young adults. I have gotten the chance to watch John not only grow on the basketball court but as a young man, and leader of young men. I would like to talk about why. As a Head Boys Basketball Coach, you really get to know and bring out the best in young men and that is what John does. Through his training and countless hours spent with the young men he coaches in the gym John is able to reach the most out of the players he comes in contact with. John is an extremely hard worker and knows what it takes to be great at anything he sets his mind to. Consistently John puts in extra work outside of training to help these players get the most exposure as our area is a very un-recruited area for basketball. From being an old teammate to now getting to coach alongside each other and work with the same players and help mentor our younger players on the team by building relationships with them, showing them dedication, compassion, and commitment, through him leading by example which are significant contributors to the development of young men. It is because of his background as a former teammate and colleague of mine that we're able to work together as well as we can. He is a great man of character, ambitious, and his love for hard work doesn’t come along often. I have witnessed firsthand the kind of impact John has had on myself and the young men he coaches and hope you see in him what those of us do.”
-Garrett
“Hi, my name is Larry Michel your local Tax collector and known John Mesadieu for 15 plus years now…We played basketball together and against each other. Great competitor, great person. John has been all through Naples Florida helping the youth and now has a platform to take it to the next level. He comes out with his kids to help me out when I need any advice or opinion about my upcoming player. John has passions and is deeply warm-hearted caring person. He supports and reach out to a lot of coaches here and also reaches out to the youth making sure they stay on the right path…keep grinding John, much needed in the community.”
-Larry
“John Mesadieu has been a mentor and coach to our son for many years. He is a man of the highest level of moral character.
He first coached Grayson in basketball through a developmental program at Seacrest Country Day School. It was clear from day one that John focused as much energy on developing these boys to be the best young men they could be off the court as he did in building their basketball skills. His commitment to all the boys on his team was sincere and commendable.
He offered to meet Grayson and a few of his teammates at a local gym several mornings a week at 6AM to continue their development after the season ended. He continued to do this for several years. He did this to make an impact on their lives. He never accepted compensation for his efforts. He did this out of love for the boys.
His work with Grayson always included time spent discussing how to be the best person possible as he was growing into adulthood. He encouraged him to work hard to pursue his dreams in athletics and life in general. He instilled a sense of confidence in Grayson that helped him immensely as he developed into a high school athlete that received several football scholarships offers from Division 1 and Division 3 universities. Grayson has committed to play football in college at Denison University. He has a 4.4 GPA. The positive impact John had on Grayson during his developmental years helped him fulfill his potential as an athlete, a student and a young man.
My wife and I are extremely grateful that John has been an amazing mentor and role model for our son. His character, morals, and clear commitment to the development of Grayson is an indicator of what kind of man John truly is. He always said that his goal was to positively impact as many lives as possible. He made a massive impact on the life of our son!”
